Should HIV Testing be Required of Gay Bareback Studios?
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
Loading ...White Tiger Releasing (WTR), a small gay video/dvd distribution company, who until recently distributed for Hot Desert Knights Studios, just announced Wednesday, August 29, 2007, that they were bringing on board a news sales manager, Greg “Spanky” Shearer, who is going to insist that any bareback studio who wishes to be distributed by WTR, must test their models for HIV.
Long before this decision was made or announced, HDK made the decision to leave White Tiger Releasing. In a letter from Bill Gardner, President of HDK, dated August 13, 2007, to Lynton Appleson, President of WTR, Mr. Appleson was informed by Mr. Gardner that due to violations of the Distribution Agreement by WTR, HDK was exercising the termination portion of the Agreement effective September 13, 2007.
HDK was aware back in July that Greg Shearer was considering joining WTR when a meeting took place between Greg Shearer, Lynton Appleson, and the management of HDK. At no point during this meeting did any representative of WTR mention that they were going to require HIV testing of models. In fact, Greg Shearer asked if HDK tested models and was informed that HDK did not do testing of models. HDK explained that testing was not done for several reasons but primarily because testing can create a false sense of security among models since it depended on what the date of testing was and what type of sex the model participated in between testing and filming. This was demonstrated recently when a straight model with a negative HIV test went to Brazil and participated in several straight bareback films during which time he acquired HIV. That model returned to the U.S. and, since his negative HIV test was still considered current, was permitted to participate in a number of straight bareback films subsequently infecting several women with HIV. Further, it was explained by Bill of HDK that HDK respected the privacy and confidentiality of their models and would not subject them to something that might later become public.
That explanation was accepted by the representatives of WTR and the issue of testing models became a non issue. Apparently, that is, until HDK notified WTR on August 13, 2007, of it’s intent to terminate the Distribution Agreement for cause effective September 13, 2007. Apparently WTR’s decision to require HIV testing was decided upon at some point after receiving the termination notification from HDK on August 13th and realizing that they were losing their largest producer.
WE WANT YOUR OPINION. What do you think about the issue of testing bareback models? Is it fair to require bareback companies to test while not requiring studios who use condoms to test? Is it fair to the models? Is it fair to demand GAY bareback companies to test while most straight bareback studios do not test?
Please read the news release below and then use the comment tag to post your comments. We really are interested in your opinion on this issue.
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Spanky Joins White Tiger
By Benji Featherstone, AVN Online
Posted: 3:48 PM PST Aug 29, 2007
Greg “Spanky” Shearer has joined White Tiger as sales manager.
The owner of White Tiger, Lynton Appleson, says, “We are very excited about Spanky coming on board - he brings over a decade of sales leadership and his acute knowledge of wholesale marketing as it relates to the retailer and end user will be invaluable.”
Shearer says, “I am very excited about White Tiger and its wide range of product lines. It will be a pleasure being the wholesale face of great-selling product like Hyde Park, Diamond Fresh Boyz, Pride Studios, and several new studios such as Firepower and Rising Son, who joined us when they heard I was coming on board! I have known Harlan at Pride Studios for several years and he was this ‘wizard of e-tailing.’ I am really ecstatic that I will have an opportunity to market his products along with an array of other wide varieties of genres here at White Tiger.”
White Tiger’s marketing director, Kurt Harold, said, “Spanky brings the finishing touch to a promising young company. His addition will free me up to work with our studios directly on new and unique niche products. Spanky is currently on the board of directors of FSC and he brings responsible input into our mission statement. He has insisted that all new studios featuring the bareback genre get on board with a policy of testing and disclosure for the talent prior to shooting. Although the bareback genre is extremely popular right now, we must be responsible about it!”
“We have decided that we will not represent studios that do not use testing criteria regardless of the significance of branding,” Shearer says. “Bareback looks as if it’s here to stay but we want to align ourselves with responsible producers such as Matt Woods from Firepower, who, like other respected colleagues, begins film preparation by responsible testing and disclosure prior to engaging models in adult content.”
Shearer is hoping that by setting an example of testing and disclosure, the entire industry will join him in protecting “the health and welfare of the most important people of erotica, the talent themselves.”
Spanky can be reached at (877) 886-7688 or spanky@whitetigerreleasing.com
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We encourage you, regardless of your opinion on this issue, to contact “Spanky” at the number or address listed above or to contact the owner of White Tiger Releasing, Lynton Appleson at (800) 977-3866 or vip@vipsvcs.com
Filed under: Current News, New Post, New Releases
Forgive my ignorance, but doesn’t the very talent that Shearer is vowing to protect have the ability to do that for themselves? I wonder if this does become a practice in the bareback film industry, will there be an underground movement creating bareback HIV positive videos? As an HIV + and healthy gay male who also enjoys bareback sex with consenting adult partners, I am amazed at, but not particularly suprised by the all of the controversy that still lingers over gay bareback videos. But, at least, this Shearer person has correctly acknowledged that barebacking is here to stay. Duh!
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Will, yes, of course the guys in our films and any other bareback film have the ability to have themselves tested and for the most part all of them do.
What worries me from a personal viewpoint is should it be REQUIRED of ONLY those GAY companies who do bareback films. What about the straight companies who shoot without condoms? The estimate is 70% of the straight porn companies require no testing and don’t use condoms. Isn’t it discriminatory to require only gay companies who shoot bareback to test? And, then what? If they are positive we don’t use them? Or..if they are negative we don’t use them? And, in the state of California, it is illegal to discriminate against anyone because of their HIV status, especially where employment issues are involved.
What Greg Shearer isn’t saying is that the company he is going to work for, White Tiger Releasing, is only a very small subsidiary of Robert Hill Releasing, which is a company that shoots only straight porn films. They aren’t placing the same requirements on Robert Hill Releasing and the companies he distributes for…which are all straight…..only the gay side. Why?
Bill
HDK has it right. We don’t want censorship, just guys being spontaneous.
I REALLY don’t understand what Shearer is trying to accomplish. Why not tell it like it is: Barebacking is highly risky business if you are negative and do it with unknown partners outside a monogamous relationship.
It is well known that many bareback porn performers are poz. If there was less phobia in the porn business (and among the actors themselves) about HIV, fighting the spreading of the disease would be so much easier.
I am poz myself and would by far prefer to watch hot models who are open about being poz barebacking like rabbits rather than some supposedly neg-guys risking their health in a movie made by a studio that pretends to care but only help to create a false sense of security among the hiv-negative part of their audience.
Will HDK by the first major bareback studio to produce a porn movie with actors who are openly poz just like you were the first to introduce barebacking to a wider audience? I hope so.
Hi Peter…….This is Bill from HDK. The only way we would ever announce that everyone in a film we produced was openly POZ would be with the consent of each model in the film. That would be unlikely since most models, if they are POZ would not want it broadcast to the world since their is still so much discrimination against POZ models within the gay porn industry. It’s a shame that in the year 2007, such discrimination still exist, especially within our own industry, but unfortunately it does. Many of our models have talked with me privately about this issue.
[...] From the HDK blog: [...]
It is the responisble thing to do to have each and every model tested for HIV, I for one would put the value of the health of a model FIRST before money. YES,bareback movies are here to stay, however it CAN be done in a safer enviroment then why not?! I know the test isnt foolproof but it had kept the straight bareback porn industry relatively safe with the exception of a couple of isolated instances. Oh and to say that 70% of the straight barebacking studios do not require testing is COMPLETE BULL! I dont know where that poster got his info but that is completely FALSE. Bareback CAN be made safer and if that means dividing the videos as “poz barebacking videos” and “neg barebacking videos” I am all for it. I have seen first hand from a few european bareback companies that HIV testing can make a huge difference as far as preventing the spread of disease, not a single model for either of these companies have had any of there model come back as HIV positive and that is all due to stringent testing. I am not saying it cant happen but it hasent as of yet (fingers crossed) P.S. and yes both european companies produce gay bareback videos only.
Oh, and for Bill from HDK, you write and I quote “It’s a shame that in the year 2007, such discrimination still exist, especially within our own industry” well OF COURSE, this is a serious disease we are talking about, why would any studio want to knowingly expose an HIV neg actor to an HIV positive actor without 1. protection and/or 2. testing? The truth of the matter Bill is that you and your company are making alot of money at the expense of other people (models in particular) and that HIV testing and/or dividing videos from hiv neg or hiv poz would cut into those profits. To say that models are afraid to face discrimination if they were “out” about what HIV status they are is ridiculous, if I were a producer I would immediately assume these models were poz just by the fact that they were even in your videos!! The industry isnt that stupid - come on! If these models are so afraid of being “outed” as poz then they should have thought about that before they signed up to be in a video called “Plantin Seed” or “50 Load Weekend”, come on who are you kidding?? I dont want to sound like a hypocrite since I really enjoy most videos HDK produces but if I can watch these films knwing what is really going on and that every model knows what they are getting themselves into then I would be able to watch with a better conscience, otherwise it will continue to be a very guilty pleasure, albiet by my own choice.
Mark
Hi Mark,
First, I am the poster who posted that 70% of the straight studios do not do HIV testing. Whether you like it or not you think it’s bull is irrelevant. The fact is, it is an accurate figure. Only ONE organization does testing for the adult industry, it’s name is Adult Industry Medical Foundation, other wise know as AIM and is it’s executive director is Sharon Mitchell. To belong to AIM you must agree to testing. Simply looking at the studios that belong to AIM will show you that it is only a handfull. Their are hundreds or studios who do not belong to AIM and who do not do testing. To the best of my knowledge no gay studios belong to that organization, and certainly no bareback studios.
Let me tell you why we don’t belong. About 4, maybe 5 years ago they came to us and asked if we’d be willing to create a PSA about the “Myths and Facts of HIV” and place it at the beginning of our films. We told them of course and even said they could write it and we would produce it. We did and we placed it at the beginning of each film. We also had several other companies…all gay of course, asked if they could use it and agreed to it immediately.
Then, about a year later, Joey and Carlos was doing a benefit for AIM in Palm Springs and was looking for sponsors. They came to us and ask if we would become a sponsor, we immediately agree to do so and became a Platinum Sponsor, meaning the highest level of sponsorship at the highest cost. About a week later Joey and Carlos called up and apologized and said that they were told by Sharon Mitchell at AIM that they could not accept money from a company who produced bareback films. NOW, TALK ABOUT HYPOCRISY!! Obviously we yanked their name and contact info from our films. We still have a PSA at the beginning and cautions on the box cover, but they make no mention of that organization.
Bill
Mark,
To continue…..how do you know that we don’t divide our models into groups….POZ and NEGS. You are making assumptions. And, have you ever seen HDK make a film titled “50 Load Weekend” or even similar? You have no clue the efforts we make to make sure that we don’t ever have “bug chasers” or gift givers” in our films. We are very private about our screening process and the things we do to protect our models and the steps we take to make sure everyone involved in the film is safe.
As for models facing discrimination if their HIV status became known, like it or not, it is a fact in this industry. We use, and have used very well known models who appear in condom videos. They have all stated to me that if it became know that they were for sure HIV positive, many of the major studios would not use them. It’s a “don’t ask don’t tell policy”. So, yes, it is a shame that within our own gay adult industry such discrimination still exists to this day.
And, as for being responsible…..how responsible is it to send a model for a test, get back a negative result and then allow that model to film without a condom for the next 60 days before the next test is required….not knowing what that model has done during those 60 days? That is the way the current HIV testing requirements are done for those studios who do use AIM for testing. And, my friend, that is why all of those girls a few years ago ended up catching HIV. That male model who infected those girls still had an HIV test was “current” even though he picked up HIV in Brazil and came back and infected several girls. Now, you tell me, what that “responsible” or did all that accomplish was to set us a false sense of security for the girls he was fucking? And, one of those girls was 19 years old making her very first adult film.
The gist of my original post wasn’t whether or not studios should test for HIV, it was whether or not ONLY GAY studios that make only BAREBACK films should be singled out as having to do the testing. Why not ALL studios…gay or straight, bareback or condom.
There is a test using just a cotton swab in the mouth that will give a result in 5 or 6 minutes. It is called OraSure. Unfortunately it isn’t available for studios to use. Only doctors offices and clinics. If we had easy access to it, regardless of the cost, we would be happy to use it and would make it part of our policies provided I and the model were the only one to know the results of the test. That way I could make sure that the results were never leaked to the public.
Finally, you said that if you were a producer you would ASSUME that all models you filmed were HIV positive. We couldn’t agree more. In fact, we tell each model during the interview process and then again at the shoot, that THEY MUST assume that every model in the film is in fact HIV positive.
Bill
Bill,
I apprecaite your response, it was well said. However AIM is justified in not accepting money from a studio that does barebacking movies without prior testing because THAT is the main point of why Sharon Mitchel started AIM to MINIMIZE the potential for these things happening, like what happened with the Darren James incident, fact is it could have been much worse had AIM not caught in before it spread even more. I am not saying that HIV testing is a foolproof way to prevent the spread of disease, however if it can at least minimize the risk then why not employ it? It certainly cannot hurt. And I agree, ALL gay studios should be testing for HIV to minimize the risk but even more so for bareback films for obvious reasons. One more point, the HIV DNA test is done every 2-3 weeks according to AIM for working actors who are currently staring back to back in videos (unless things have changed since I last visited the office) One last thing is, and this is the one thing about your reply that doesnt make sense to me, you stated and I quote “We are very private about our screening process and the things we do to protect our models and the steps we take to make sure everyone involved in the film is safe” Why are do you have to be so private? What is there to hide? why not let it be known exactly what you ARE doing to back up that claim, I just dont get the “very private” part. However having said all this I am still a fan of your videos so all is well. What I can tell you is that I contracted Hepatitis B from my “barebacking days” luckily it was acute and I didnt go chronic. That experience was a living hell for 5 months, I cannot fathom someone else having to go though what I went through and with HIV and the meds I just cant even begin to think what those people go through, and with the risk of becoming co-infected with both HIV and Hepatitis forget it! so whenever I can I try to advocate safety and that means testing for HIV AND Hepatitis A as well as B. I know I am being completely hypocritical here and I dont mean to be, the fact of the matter is that I live my “barebacking” fantasies through your videos and remember how great it was to feel a nice load up my ass and being gang fucked bareback by 4-5 guys. I love feltching, cum eating and gaping assholes….difference is that I dont do it anymore because for me, the risk it too great. So on one hand your videos are a guilty pleasure to say the least, it serves the purpose of getting me off because condoms in porn films turn me off- I will admit that point blank, I LOVE you videos - THERE I SAID IT OUT LOUD!LOL But if you say you are doing everything you can to protect your models and are looking out for there saftey then I will take your word on that, but I would like to know why you have to be so secretive about it, that part is what I just dont get.
Sincerely,
Mark
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Reply from HDK Bill
Hi Mark,
Thanks for your well written and well thought out comments. Like you, we have many guys who tell us they buy our product because in real life they wear condoms and watching out films allow them to fantasize about “the good ol days”, and really, that is why we started making and continue to make bareback films.
To answer your question about how private we are or “secretive”, it’s very simple. First, our society is a very litigious society. Our attorney tell us that we need to keep our processes in house in regards to what we do to protect our models. We aren’t so much worried about a lawsuit from any of our models, but from governmental agencies, of which there are many, you always believe they have the rights, if not obligation, to protect from ourselves. Therefore, we are told by our attorneys to say nothing in public….in writing, that could some day be used against up.
Our models, for the most part, become our friends. Many of them come back to PS often and stay with us when on vacation. We talk a great deal on set about STD’s, how they occur, how they are transmitted and what the physical signs are. We also talk about the vaccine for Hep A and Hep B, and how their is nothing yet for Hep C and how bad it is if you are HIV Positive and then acquire Hep C.
We don’t do testing for a multitude of reason, most of them legal since here in California it is illegal to discriminate against a person for employment based on their HIV status. Also, testing isn’t foolproof, as the case with Darren James proved. Yes, AIM did catch it rather early, but only because Darren was due to take another test soon after he appeared in the films where he infected those unfortunate girls. But, what if he had become infected right after he had taken a HIV test, and then fucked on camera for a month. The situation would have been much worse.
For a non profit organization to turn money, especially after we had developed a PSA for AIM and after working with them, is, in my opinion, the height of stupidity and hypocrisy. In any event, we both can reserve the right to agree to disagree.
Lastly, no gay studio that I am aware of, bareback or otherwise, uses AIM. One of the reasons is that there is a real fear among positive models that the results will get out and AIDS-Phobia still exists today in this country. The models believe that once their status in known they will be out of work. On the straight side of things, Sharon Mitchell and AIM only speak for a very, very small minority of the straight studios. The vast percentage of straight studios do not test……and they continue to make films with no condoms. The only difference between them and the gay studios are we call it barebacking, they just don’t mention it, but the vast majority of straight studios make bareback films.
Again, thanks for your comments, they are always wecome.
Bill
Test, then leave the option of actors who want to bareback with infected partners and those who don’t, don’t. I’m sure you ask if actors would perform with another who is positive.
Ryan,
Thanks for your comment. Yes, of course, the actors know who they will be having sex with and they are required to talk with one another regarding their health status.
Our model application makes it very clear the type of studio we are and we ask some very pointed questions about testing.
All models of course, are adults, they are informed and all of the sex they perform is consensual.
Bill